Cisgender:

"a term for people whose gender identity matches the sex that they were assigned at birth. Cisgender may also be defined as those who have "a gender identity or perform a gender role society considers appropriate for one's sex" It is the opposite of the term transgender."

Transgender:

"a gender you weren’t assigned with at birth. When the doctor slapped your booty and said “It’s a ______”, you were not content with that. This could’ve been in childhood or even much older. Either way, your gender is valid."

"people who have a gender identity or gender expression that differs from their assigned sex. Transgender people are sometimes called transsexual if they desire medical assistance to transition from one sex to another. Transgender is also an umbrella term: in addition to including people whose gender identity is the opposite of their assigned sex (trans men and trans women), it may include people who are not exclusively masculine or feminine (people who are genderqueer, e.g. bigender, pangender, genderfluid, or agender). Other definitions of transgender also include people who belong to a third gender, or conceptualize transgender people as a third gender. Infrequently, the term transgender is defined very broadly to include cross-dressers, regardless of their gender identity."

Nonbinary:

"a catch-all category for gender identities that are not exclusively masculine or feminine‍-identities which are thus outside of the gender binary and cisnormativity. Genderqueer people may express a combination of masculinity and femininity, or neither, in their gender expression.

as a descriptive term for people in this category. However, not all persons identify as androgynous. Genderqueer people may identify as either having an overlap of, or indefinite lines between, gender identity; having two or more genders (being bigender, trigender, or pangender); having no gender (being agender, nongendered, genderless, genderfree or neutrois); moving between genders or having a fluctuating gender identity (genderfluid); or being third gender or other-gendered, a category which includes those who do not place a name to their gender."

Sex can and should be empowering and affirming, for any gender or sexual orientation. Whether you’re being sexual with yourself or others, your sex should reflect whatever is best and safest for you and/or your partner(s).
When you are a nonbinary person, because sex has been scripted in such an essentialist way, you might experience dysphoria or other triggering moments during sex. When you are a gender conforming person having sex with a nonbinary person, you must consciously ensure that your partner’s experience is affirming rather than triggering. Here are a few steps to keep in mind:

1) Unlearn the binary scripts of sex:

When you are a nonbinary person you may have been socialized as male or female during the beginnings of your sexual exploration, and you still may have memory or muscle memory of those sexual roles. You may have been socialized to be one who penetrates or one who receives, a dominant or a submissive. Even reversing or opposing these roles can still feel gendered: one of the first times I was sexual with another person with a vagina, I felt a maleness arise in me, as if there was a “he” who needed to be present. This can be fine, if it makes sense for you and your partner, but I was able to recognize that I was trying to approximate a heteronormative sexual experience because it was the only understanding of sex I had ever had.

I had to confront the unspoken scripts that were racing through my mind, informing my actions and experiences: if she’s being dominant, I should be submissive. If I’m focused predominantly on her orgasm, I feel more masculine. I was able to recognize that I was ascribing gender to experience, and I didn’t have to – I didn’t have to!
My gender identity is not necessarily directly correlated with what I like in bed, and my sexual experiences do not need to be informed by the gender binary.

You don’t need to sacrifice your nonbinary identity to be sexual, because you do not need to perform gender during sex. There doesn’t have to be a male or female, dominant or submissive. Experience yourself and your partner. Undo the power imbalance – share and balance your powers instead.

As the partner of a nonbinary person, it is crucial to be aware of this. Do not ever expect your nonbinary partner to perform gender during sex. Be aware of the fact that no matter your own sexuality, you may implicitly expect your partner to take on a role complementing your own — recognize that there are no opposites here. Focus on creating an experience of pleasure and positivity for both of you. Do not forget that the trust that must go into any sexual experience may be heightened for your nonbinary partner. The process of self-love that non-cis individuals may experience before they’re able to share their bodies with someone else can be a very fraught one – respect and appreciate that they are granting you this trust, and do not betray it.

Communicate, always. This doesn’t mean bully or coerce them into sharing information that might make them uncomfortable, or guilting/pressuring them into teaching you how to fuck them in a way that feels empowering or affirming for you. Let them know you understand that you do not have authority over what they’re going through, that you respect their desires and their body, and that you are here to share a positive experience.

2) Recognize dysphoria:

The sounds you make, the expectations of what your body should do or should experience, the way you move – all this has been gendered, and whether you are nonbinary or being intimate with someone who is, it’s a process of consciously detaching those reductive gender ideas from what’s actually happening.

As a nonbinary person, combating dysphoria can already be a struggle. When we experience it in sex, it can be even more triggering. Reclaiming your breasts, your penis, your testicles, your vagina, and/or your orgasm from societal scripts and exploring them as they actually manifest in your incredible body, as they affect your incredible soul — that in and of itself is an experience, and can become a celebration. Let your partner know what triggers you, and if certain acts or expectations manifest as misgendering for you. You can be explicit or you can keep certain reasons private depending on your relationship with your sex partner, but there must be some degree of trust if you are going to be intimate. You shouldn’t feel pressure to detail past trauma to a casual hookup, for example, but you can let them know that you’re not comfortable being submissive, and they should respect that.

As the partner of a nonbinary person, ask how you can help. Be aware of how the reality of your cis body, the certainty with which you inhabit it, may be painful for your partner. Recognize it’s not about you. Good sex requires you to be both a little selfish and selfless, but when you’re having sex with someone with dysphoria, recognize that your needs and wants must adjust to the possibilities of what is safe and comfortable for them. Check in. Make sure what you’re doing together is affirming for their mind and body. Avoid gendered sexual language, unless your partner wants you to use certain gender labels or pronouns.

3) Focus on the realities of you and your bodies:

Now that you’ve undone the narrow notions of what sex “should” be, and worked to make you and your partner(s) are comfortable in your shared space, you are part of a comparatively unscripted sexual experience. This means you can focus on your comfort, and your pleasure.

As a nonbinary person, focus on what actually feels good for you. Take time by yourself, if you’re comfortable with it. This can be masturbation or literally just experimenting with your own senses. Explore your body by yourself; touch places no one has; use different pressure. Remember that there’s no should here, nothing should necessarily feel good, just focus on what is. If penetration feels good to you, experiment with pressure, placement, speed, depth. If stimulation of your thighs, chest, throat feels good to you, explore how much. When you are ready to be with a partner, communicate what you’ve learned. Don’t feel trapped by what you’ve been taught bodies like yours should enjoy — no body is quite like yours. Your sexual experience is a place of possibility. Positive, communicative sexual experiences may actually affirm your gender identity — this is your body, and you are in control of what you do with it and what you want others to do with you. You define what feels pleasurable to you.

When you are the partner of a nonbinary person, listen. Without putting pressure on your partner, ask them what feels best for them. Be responsive, check in to make sure they like how you’re doing what you’re doing. Be open to using toys, or experimenting with positions. Do not view toys as a threat. When your nonbinary partner asks you to adjust something that you’re used to, something you’ve never questioned (like playing with nipples or testicles, for example), respect them, their preferences, and their body. Do not view their instruction on how to make them feel sexy and safe as a criticism of your own sexual skill — instead, recognize that this is how to be sexual with the individual in front of you, and embrace it. Detach your sex from binary roles, from binary expectations. Work together to make each other feel good.

Sex is a collaboration, a partnership, and can be experienced positively by anyone who wants it, across the gender spectrum. Gender is not binary, and neither, necessarily, is sex. To all of us out here whose gender exists outside the binary, to the nonwhite nonbinary, the disabled nonbinary, the asexual nonbinary, I love you! Know that if you want it, positive and affirming sexual experiences are out there for you, as well as within you. Your body is unlike any other, and that is an awesome and powerful truth. Your body belongs to you, and whoever you share it with must respect your identity and your desires.

Now go out there and be sexual in whatever way makes you safe, affirmed, and satisfied!

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